Lebanon has been abuzz with the case of Ziad Doueiri, the Lebanese-French filmmaker who brought us the award-winning “West Beirut”, and whose latest movie “The Insult” premieres in Lebanon after picking up the Volpi Cup for Best Actor.

The Attack (2012)

The issue is with certain scenes in his 2012 movie, “The Attack”. Some scenes were filmed in Israel, and Doueiri did inform the Lebanese authorities about his intent, but never got a reply. What’s remarkable, is that the General Security censorship bureau approved “The Attack”, but it was then banned by the boycott bureau in Ministry of Economy. The GSDG position back then, was that the movie “took a brave stance with the Palestinian cause”, despite some of the scenes being filmed in Israel which has some angry.

The Insult (2017)

Doueiri regularly visit Beirut, and was here to shoot his new movie, The Insult, and even had permission to shoot from the government. So, if there was a case against him, how come they just remembered now? And how come he was released with no charge? Something obviously doesn’t add up.

Why This Happened

Ziad’s new movie tackles a touchy subject: a tense legal battle between a Lebanese Forces Achrafieh resident and garage owner, and a Palestinian man tasked with renovations of that neighborhood by a local politician looking to employ Palestinian people. The incident escalates, and leads to prolonged court battles, with protests and pressure from both sides of the aisle making things worse.

It seems that this portrayal of Lebanon’s lasting wounds, which no one seems to want to address, along with the light shed on the political and judicial system in Lebanon, is something that some folks do not want to be shown on the silver screen.

This would explain a smear campaign aimed at the director, timed just before his new movie released, which would have compelled the authorities to take action. After the arrest, and appearing at the Military Tribunal today, judge Sakr Sakr deemed was not a crime and Doueiri will not be prosecuted for it.

So, it’s obvious someone is upset about the old movie, and doesn’t want the new one to come out, and thought using the Israel card would work. It hasn’t though, luckily, which I think is a good legal precedent in Lebanon.

Why Some People Are Outraged

The fact that some of the scenes were shot in Israel, was a step too far for some people. For an artist, the genuine feel of filming the scene in the actual place the story is supposed to take place, was a good enough excuse in telling a the story. In Doueiri’s defense, he did inform the authorities, they just didn’t answer, and the movie was eventually banned, even though the General Security OK-ed it, given it wasn’t pro-Israel and anti-Zionism. So, if anything, the laws need to be updated, and exceptions like for clergy and journalists, need to be revisited, unless it’s ok for a priest to go do “work” in Israel, when civilian mortals aren’t allowed…

The fact that people think filming a scene should be punishable, when many of today’s politicians and political parties actually collaborated with Israel in the past, and remain free, renders their argument stupid and invalid.

The point of a boycott, is that it’s by choice, not by force. When it’s by force, it’s no longer boycott, its oppression. The trend of forcing things down people’s throats using lofty slogans, can’t fly anymore. If someone is pissed off about a filmmakers’ work, using the Israel card is not ok, it’s insulting and trivializes the cause of fighting Israel, as just some silly gimmick you pull out to stop a concert, or movie, or festival. Did it really boil down to just that? That you think the conflict with Israel will be fought and won by banning movies and jailing filmmakers? That’s just sad, and disrespectful for the people actually suffering and struggling against Israeli oppression, while you sip on your Coca Colas and Pepsis while you retweet banning requests on social networks of companies with pro-Israel positions. I mean, come on, there’s only so much hypocrisy you can take…

In the End

This boils down to the Lebanese system being abused by someone for personal reasons, as with most cases of censorship and intimidation in Lebanon. In the coming days, I’m sure the exact details will come out. What’s for sure, is that no crime was done, and the attempt to smear and stop the new Doueiri movie failed.

It’s time to update our laws, and that they be applied to everyone, not just specific cases. Ban Gal Gadot movies, but what about all the other movies and Israeli actors? The law will never be the law, if it’s only applied when someone wants to solve a personal vendetta and use government institutions to push a personal, petty agenda.

Israel must be boycotted, but punishing a filmmaker for shooting a scene, while convicted spies and collaborators roam free, isn’t gonna fly.

So, all I have to add is I hope you enjoy The Insult!